The Zombie Master
by cheri1
Summary: Ten/Rose. It's nearly time for Halloween and the Doctor takes Rose to a planet where they can participate in a zombie walk and attend a party. However, there are some people who prefer real zombies and the Doctor and Rose soon find out that the undead do exist.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

Rose grinned as she finished applying her zombie makeup. It was nearly time for Halloween judging by the calendar Rose kept in her room and even though the Doctor insisted that it was practically worthless when they were inside a time machine, he still made a point of asking Rose what day it was on her calendar from time to time and planning accordingly whenever holidays neared.

Now, since it was almost Halloween, the Doctor had promised Rose that he would take her on a zombie walk somewhere and Rose was excited at the idea of the two of them getting dressed up like zombies and having fun. Rose had chosen some old clothes that still fit but she no longer liked wearing and ripped and ruined them in order to make her zombie clothes. She then got online and studied different photos of zombie makeup before choosing something she liked. The TARDIS had a beauty salon and makeup room and she found different face paints inside the makeup room, including some fake blood. She spent several hours experimenting until she looked just right and now she was back inside the room, recreating her zombie look. She sat in front of a vanity mirror, applying grey makeup to her face to get a rotting flesh look and then applying black makeup around the eyes and on her lips before applying some fake blood on the corners of her mouth, forehead and cheeks. While she was doing that, the door to the makeup room opened and the Doctor walked inside. He paused and silently critiqued Rose's makeup and costume before nodding his approval and moving towards the chair beside her.

"So are you going to be a zombie then?" Rose said, looking at his reflection while she put some grey on her hands and arms.

"I was thinking I could be a zombie master and you could be my pet," the Doctor said, wagging his eyebrows.

"You're not going to put on makeup?" Rose said.

The Doctor looked at her makeup, squeezed a dab of fake blood onto his finger, put it in the middle of his forehead and sat back.

"Done," he said.

He laughed when Rose gave him a withering look. He leaned forward, looking at the makeup on the vanity table before getting up and walking over to a cupboard behind them. He opened it, went inside and came out with a few more makeup items, an applicator, spirit gum and a bald cap. Rose applied her makeup while watching the Doctor's reflection, interested in what he was doing. The Doctor put on the bald cap, obscuring his hair and sideburns and then pasting down the sides of it with the spirit gum. Then he grabbed a big jar of white greasepaint and began applying it all over his face and the bald cap while Rose paused a moment to watch him. He applied the white makeup all over his face before he got up and walked over to a sink in the corner of the room. He washed his hands and dried them with a small grey towel hanging from a towel rack on the side of the sink. He then walked back over and sat down and Rose watched with fascination as he slowly made his face look like a skull.

"Wow, you're good at this," Rose said, marveling at the expert makeup job.

"Worked briefly in the Hollywood makeup department in my Eighth life," the Doctor said, working on putting black around his eyes. "Learned several tricks that have since come in handy when I'm disguising myself. I figure I'm so old the skin has rotted off my face."

It took him nearly an hour before he was done and then he sat back and turned his face to Rose. He had black eyes and nose, black lips with teeth painted around them and black cracks all over his face and the top of his head. Rose applauded his handiwork and the Doctor bowed slightly in acknowledgement. He then held up his finger, went over and washed his hands and sat back down again.

"I love what you did to your face but may I add to it?" he asked her.

"Please do," Rose said.

The Doctor held up his finger before going back into the cupboard. The Doctor carried out a small, black metal box. Rose watched eagerly as he opened it and showed it to her. Inside were fake wounds, scars and scabs.

"May I?" he said to her.

"Please," Rose said.

The Doctor smiled and gently moved Rose's head sideways. Rose sat still while the Doctor applied some of the prosthetics, making it look like her face was rotting in places. He used the spirit gum to glue the prosthetics in place before blending them in with the makeup. When he was finished, Rose looked at herself in the mirror and gasped with delight. She now had decaying flesh and open wounds all over her face.

"Oh, thank you, you're good at this," Rose said.

"I know," the Doctor said smugly.

He chuckled when Rose playfully shoved his chest.

"So where are we going then?" she asked him.

"Well, I was thinking…why visit Earth when I know another planet that goes all out for Halloween and has one of the biggest zombie walks in the universe."

"Ooo, do tell," Rose said.

"Well, as I said, they love Halloween and dressing up and…" he said, leaning forward. "Not only do they have a zombie walk but they have a huge fancy dress party afterwards that lasts till dawn. But…you wouldn't want that so we'll go to some redneck, hillbilly town where they have three zombies in their walk and they're all podgy and smelly and gross."

"Or…we can go to this planet and have real fun," Rose said.

"No hillbilly podgy zombies?" the Doctor said, pretending to pout.

"No!" Rose said.

The Doctor chuckled. He leaned forward and put his fingertips under Rose's chin. Rose smiled, loving the Doctor's skull makeup and the fact that he was willing to go all out to have fun with her while the Doctor examined her face to make sure she looked perfect. Satisfied that she was ready, he got up from his chair.

"Right, Halloween festival, here we come!" he said to her before leaving the room.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two

After finding a pair of comfortable plimsols, Rose walked up to the Console Room, eager to see where they were going. When she found him, she stopped in her tracks and her mouth dropped open.

He was standing at the console, flying the TARDIS but instead of his usual brown suit and white trainers, he was dressed in a jet black pinstriped suit with maroon shirt, black tie and maroon trainers. Rose stood there, thinking he had never looked so sexy in his life. The Doctor also was wearing a pair of gloves that resembled skeleton hands, the Doctor sensed he was being watched and looked over at her, smiling warmly.

"You changed your clothes," Rose said, thinking how retarded that sounded once it was out of her mouth.

"Well, I was thinking I could be a sophisticated deadie," the Doctor said. "I was a man of means who was buried in me best suit and now I walk the Earth, rich and dead…or undead, I suppose. And you?"

"I'm me, only undead," Rose said sheepishly.

The Doctor laughed, a laugh Rose loved to hear, and he beckoned to her to come to his side.

"There is an Earth colony in the year 2177," the Doctor explained to her. "On the planet London in the Andromeda Galaxy so not too far from Earth."

"The planet is called London? Seriously?"

"Well, the original colonists were from the UK," the Doctor replied. "Others followed, of course, but there was a lot of British pride involved in the naming of the planet and the cities. We are headed to New Cardiff for the festival."

"And does New Cardiff look like the old Cardiff?" Rose asked.

"No. Because New Cardiff is on London and not on Earth."

"Cardiff is on London? That's a bummer. Have they tried to move Cardiff off London so the Welsh aren't squashing the English?"

"Hardy har har," the Doctor said while Rose snickered. "Keep talking and I'll send you to Coventry."

"And where is that? On Surrey?"

She giggled and ran around the console as the Doctor tried to smack her head. She came back around and the Doctor put his arm around her when she reached his side.

"So, they love Halloween, eh?" Rose asked him.

"Well, bit of nostalgia really. I mean, these are Earthlings in a technical sense. It's been fifty years since the first expedition landed and they now have second generation citizens that grew up listening to the stories of Earth from their parents and they're keen on keeping the traditions alive. And why not? Halloween is fun, very spooky and eerie…"

"And filled with monsters which is right up your street," Rose said.

The Doctor grinned and nodded at that.

"I also am meeting a friend. He'll be joining us tonight."

"Oh? Someone I know?"

"No. Old friend who lives in New Kent. Lovely chap. You'll like him."

"And what is this New Kent bloke called when he's at home?"

"Bartholomew. Goes by Bart though. I thought he could show us around as well. And we can stay at his house after the fancy dress party so we can get some rest before leaving."

Rose nodded, curious about this friend. The Doctor hopped from place to place and he'd never returned to visit any of the people they'd befriended from their journeys so she was keen on meeting Bart and listening to his stories.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Here we are, New Cardiff," the Doctor said, stepping outside the TARDIS with Rose.

The first thing Rose saw was an enormous jack o lantern sculpture on top of a brick building about thirty feet in front of them. The jack o lantern was lit up from inside by a large light bulb and since it was night, the effect was both eerie and beautiful to her.

"You're right, they do go all out for Halloween," Rose said, pointing to it.

"That? That's only the tip of the iceberg. Follow me," the Doctor said.

He shut the TARDIS doors and took her hand. The TARDIS was parked by the side of a brick building that seemed to be boarded up and abandoned. Rose hoped that the TARDIS chose that spot so no one would think of bothering the time ship since the next couple of buildings looked abandoned as well. They crossed the street and headed for the building with the jack o lantern. Beyond the building, there were people walking back and forth along the sidewalks, some of them dressed up for Halloween, which made Rose fell better about being out in public in her zombie makeup. When they walked through the alleyway next to the jack o lantern building and reached the pavement, Rose was shocked when she saw a forty foot ghost sculpture in a park across the street. The ghost looked like it was shrieking and had it's arms up in the air as if menacing the crowd below. Another light inside it made it glow and Rose was dumbstruck while the Doctor gauged her reaction and grinned.

"Told ya there were more impressive things here than just that pumpkin," he said to her. "Now…the zombie walk begins in the park so follow me!"

They looked both ways before hurrying across the street. Inside the park, Rose saw a large crowd of people dressed as zombies. She held the Doctor's hand and looked around while they headed towards a large grandstand in the center of the park. There were people of all ages and sizes, milling around and laughing and talking. Some were holding little plastic cups filled with something, sipping it while they chatted with others.

The Doctor looked around and led Rose to a small booth behind the ghost that was selling the beverages.

"Fancy an apple cider, my little zombie?" the Doctor said to her. "My treat."

"I would love one," Rose said.

They stood in the queue and when they got up to the booth, the Doctor ordered two small cups of cider and paid for them with a couple of dollar bills that were engraved with some old man that Rose had never seen before. The Doctor handed her a cup and took his own and they walked away, hand in hand, while Rose gingerly sipped her cup, trying not to ruin her makeup.

"Mm, good cider," Rose said after taking a sip.

"Mm-hm, you should try the caramel apples," the Doctor replied. "Now…Bart said we should meet him by the grandstand…"

"Does he know what you look like?" Rose asked.

"Mm, yeah. I sent him a photo of us to his mobile so he knows. Also sent him a photo of my makeup so he knows that as well," the Doctor said, nodding.

As they neared the grandstand, a young man dressed in rags and wearing grayish makeup on his face waved to Rose and the Doctor. The Doctor waved back and he and Rose walked towards him. The man had long brown hair that had been mussed up for his zombie look. He had a boyish face that was handsome even though he had the makeup on. As they got closer, Rose noticed he had a small skull tattoo on his right forearm and his right ear was pierced with a silver stud earring.

"Hey, Doctor," he said with an American accent, beaming as he went to greet them.

"Bart, good to see you again. This is Rose," the Doctor said, gesturing to her.

"Rose, it's a pleasure," Bart said, shaking her hand.

Rose blushed a little when Bart gave her an appraising look and smiled.

"It's nice to meet you," she said.

"Welcome to New Cardiff," Bart said, letting go of her hand. "Supposedly this is going to be the biggest zombie walk ever. Lots of people in attendance and they have food, games, a costume contest and Triple Threat will be in concert here later tonight after the walk," he said, pointing to the grandstand. "You hungry? They have a concession stand nearby. I think they have corndogs, pumpkin pie, candy corn, funnel cakes, all the good stuff you're not supposed to eat."

"No thanks, I'm not hungry right now," Rose said.

"Yeah, we'll wait," the Doctor said.

Bart nodded.

"Well, follow me and I'll show you where you can get registered for the walk," he said to them.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three

The three of them hung around the grandstand, sipping cider and chatting after being registered for the walk. Bart was explaining to Rose that he had met the Doctor in his fifth life when he, Tegan and Turlough had saved him from a crazed alien murderer that had been terrorizing the city. Since then, the Doctor had made several visits to check on him and he had seen him again in his seventh and eighth bodies before seeing him now. He also explained that his parents were free spirits and had left Chicago before he was born in search of adventure. They decided to leave Earth and came to London. They loved London and settled down for the most part in New Cardiff to make a life and have a family.

"They still travel from time to time," Bart said to Rose. "But not as often as they used to since I'm around. But when I go off to college, they'll probably start their nomadic ways up again."

They finished their cider and thew away their cups in a trash bin when they heard an announcement over a loudspeaker that it was time to begin the walk. The Doctor and Rose followed Bart to the street on the other side of the park. There were masses of people gathering for it and the Doctor and Rose found themselves in the middle of the throng after more people fell in behind them.

"Hello everyone and welcome to New Cardiff's Tenth Annual Zombie Walk," a male voice said through several loudspeakers mounted in the trees. "Just a few words before we begin…we want this walk to continue every year so no vandalism, crime, harassment of the other participants or observers and let's all try to be polite and respectful, eh? The walk starts here and will run for about a mile in a large square and we end up back on the far side of the park. So…without further ado, let the zombie apocalypse begin!"

The crowd began to move slowly out of the park and onto the street so the Doctor, Rose and Bart waited until the crowd had broken up enough to move forward. The Doctor held Rose's hand while he looked around at the different zombie faces. While Rose waited, she suddenly felt someone pinch her butt and her eyes bulged. She whipped her head around and noticed a young man behind her was grinning and winking at her.

"Watch it, mate," Rose growled at him.

The Doctor, hearing her, turned his head around and the man quickly looked away when the Doctor gave him a look of warning. Rose and the Doctor turned their heads back around just in time for the crowd to thin out enough that they could move forward. The people around them were doing their best to amble like zombies, moaning and groaning and waving around fake axes and knives. As they left the park, Rose could see people standing on the pavement on either side of the street, watching and cheering them on. Some of the participants were pretending to menace the crowd while the crowd screamed and pretended to be scared. Rose grinned, let go of the Doctor's hand and joined in with the others, scaring the bystanders as best she could while the Doctor laughed.  
>Bart helped her out and the two of them menaced a little girl standing by the side of the road while the girl giggled at them.<p>

"Brains, braaaaains!" Rose moaned at the girl while her parents chuckled.

They waved at the little girl before moving away. The Doctor had slowed his pace and he was glancing over his shoulder as they walked towards him. The Doctor looked over when someone tapped him on the shoulder and he saw two young women walking beside him.

"Oh my God," one of them said. "Your makeup is brilliant!"

"Thank you, so is yours," the Doctor replied, nodding his head at them.

"My name is Serena," the woman said to him. "This is Candice."

"The Doctor," he replied. "My friends, Rose and Bart," he said, pointing behind him when Rose and Bart caught up to him.

Serena reintroduced herself and Candice and they walked with the Doctor, Rose and Bart. Both of them were teenagers and both of them had light grey makeup on with blackened eyes, ripped dresses and mussed up hair. The five of them growled and moaned at the crowd and yelled, "BRAAAAINS!" before giggling and waving at the bystanders.

"Wanna come with us after this is over?" Bart asked Serena and Candice. "Go get something to eat?"

The teens nodded. When they weren't meanacing the crowd, they were chatting with their new friends. The girls lived in the city and they were both seventeen and on their last year at high school. They had participated in every zombie walk since it started and they joked that they would still be doing it when they were old and grey. Both of them had Cockney accents which was a sharp contrast to Bart's American one.

They were about a mile into the walk when suddenly someone ran out of an alleyway and made a beeline for the Doctor and Rose. The woman was in her twenties with her hair shaved military style and an emaciated body. Her skin was pale with dark circles around her eyes and her clothes were tattered and torn.

"Please help me!" the woman said, grabbing a hold of the Doctor's lapels.

"Wow, that's a brilliant costume, lady, but seriously, you need to eat a sandwich," Serena said.

The Doctor stopped when the woman blocked his path and everyone made a circle around the lady, watching as the woman held on to his lapels as if her life depended on it.

"Please, I beg of you, help me before he finds me again!" she said to the Doctor.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four

"Okay…" Candice said as the woman continued to hang on to the Doctor, "this is a bit awkward."

"Please, he's coming for me!" the woman begged the Doctor.

The Doctor looked around and noticed some people sitting on a Perspex bench off to their right. He pointed to it and Rose walked over to the family group sitting there.

"Hi, sorry to trouble you, but we have an emergency and we need your bench. Do you mind terribly getting up and letting us sit down?" she said sweetly to them.

"Piss off," one man said. "You're a part of the zombie walk, so go walk it!"

"LISTEN, MATE, WE HAVE AN EMERGENCY AND YOU DON'T WANT TO HAVE ME FORCIBLY MOVE YOU FROM THAT BENCH, SO CLEAR OFF!" Rose screeched at him.

The family glanced around and noticed others were now watching them. Then before they could say anything, the Doctor walked the woman over to the bench while his friends followed him. He gave the family a pointed look and pointed to the terrified woman. The father sighed and urged his family to get up and with sour looks they moved away. The bench was clear with neon rods installed underneath that gave off a blue glow. The Doctor sat the woman down and sat down beside her while Rose sat on her other side and the others crowded round in front of them. The people nearby watched for a moment out of curiosity before turning their attention back to the zombies.

"Just calm down please, you're among friends here," the Doctor said gently to the woman. "What's your name?"

"Jessica, the woman said as the Doctor took her trembling hands in his. "Jessica Bronson. I'm from here but…I was taken a few months ago by this man and held prisoner."

She paused and shuddered.

"He looks like you," she said to the Doctor.

The Doctor frowned.

"But I'm wearing makeup," he said.

"Yes, I know but he wears a skull mask during the rituals, like yours," she said. "I was afraid to go to you at first but something told me I could trust you."

"Who is "He", Jessica?" the Doctor said.

"He said he was Lord Morte and he was the master of zombies."

"OH!"

Everyone looked at Serena when she yelled that. She was grinning and shaking her head.

"Yeah, good one, Jessica. Master of Zombies on a zombie walk, had us going there for a moment," she said.

"I'm not lying," Jessica said desperately. "You have to believe me!"

"Yeah, right, see you later. Come on, Candice," Serena said, rolling her eyes.

She walked away but Candice hesitated, dividing her gaze between her departing friend and her new friends.

"Well go on," Bart said angrily. "Go with your friend, can't miss out on the zombie walk!"

"You believe this?" Candice said.

"I've known the Doctor for quite awhile and I've seen amazing things so yes, I do believe it," Bart said.

"CANDICE, YOU COMING?"

Candice looked at Serena and then looked back at the Doctor before making up her mind.

"YOU GO ON, I'LL CATCH UP LATER!" she yelled.

Serena sighed and shook her head before turning and walking away. The Doctor smiled warmly at her before turning his attention back to Jessica.

"Can you show us where this Lord Morte is?" he asked her.

Jessica shuddered and shook her head.

"I spent two days running away from him, I don't want to go back," she said, her eyes wide with panic.

"Did you see others there, where you were?" Rose asked.

"Yes. He kidnaps them and turns them into zombies and then he…enslaves them."

Candice raised her eyebrow.

"And you're serious?" she said. "I mean, my friend is right, this is rather odd since it's the middle of the zombie walk."

"I know it sounds insane but I know what I saw," Jessica said angrily. "This man takes people and kills them and turns them into zombies and I was going to be next before I got away from him. He starved and tortured me and tried to brainwash me so I wouldn't fight back. I'm serious, please believe me!" she implored the Doctor.

"I believe you, Jessica. I'm the Doctor and you've found the right person. This is Rose, Bart and Candice and we'll help you but you have to help us as well if we're going to stop this Lord Morte from taking and killing anymore people. You don't have to go back but will you help us by giving us information?"

"I'll tell you what I know. He kept me in a cage and I didn't see everything but I saw enough," Jessica said.

"Are you able to walk?" the Doctor said to her.

"I think so," Jessica said.

"Come on, we'll go back to my TARDIS and we'll help you get well again while you tell us everything you know," the Doctor said.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The Doctor walked with Jessica as they made their way back to the TARDIS. People from the sidelines yelled at them that he and his friends were going the wrong way but they ignored their insults and catcalls and focused on getting Jessica back to the TARDIS. She managed to walk independently until they were almost to the park and then her legs gave out and she collapsed from exhaustion. The Doctor gathered her up in his arms and walked with her as the others followed. Several people asked if she was alright as he walked through the park but the Doctor kept on walking, calling out to them that she was tired and felt ill and he was taking care of it.

When they reached the TARDIS, the Doctor let Rose use her key to get them inside. When they walked inside, Jessica frowned in confusion as she looked up at the ceiling and Candace stopped short just inside the doorway.

"Is this a special effect or something?" she said to Bart who was shutting the door.

"Trust me, you get used to it and no, it's for real," he said to her.

Candice mentally shrugged and followed Bart as they followed the others out of the room. The Doctor led them back to the med bay where he lay Jessica down on an examination table. He then began directing everyone to bring him supplies so he could take a blood test and start an IV drip. He brought over a portable scanner from the other side of the room while he told everyone where to find the supplies he needed. He instructed them to put everything on a metal trolley and when they were done, Candice wheeled it over to the Doctor's side. He thanked her and everyone gathered around and watched as he used the scanner to do a scan of her body while putting in an IV and taking some blood samples. Jessica watched passively as everyone worked to find out what was wrong with her and stabilize her body.

"How many people does this man have?" the Doctor said as he looked at the results of the scan. "Can you give me a rough estimate?"

"He had two living people, a young man and a middle aged woman but he has hundreds of zombies working for him," Jessica said as the Doctor directed Rose to start the IV drip.

"Doing what?" Rose said.

"He has a large estate," Jessica said. "They work his fields, tend to his house, make food for him."

"So he's lazy and gets the dead to do it all for him," Candice said.

"Yes, I think so. He's evil and he needs to be stopped," Jessica said, nodding.

"Any idea how he makes the zombies?" Bart asked.

"I…don't know, I didn't see that part but he does wear a skull mask as part of it, like his," Jessica said, pointing to the Doctor's face.

"Yes, well, I'll be taking this makeup off just as soon as you're stable," the Doctor said to her. "As for you, he beat you, yeah?"

"Yes," Jessica said, shuddering while Rose put her hand on Jessica's shoulder.

"The scan indicates bruising, old bruises, and you have a hairline fracture on the second rib down on your left side. He hit you there as well?"

Jessica nodded.

"Bastard," Bart said, shaking his head.

"Your body is dehydrated as well but that goes without saying," the Doctor said. "I have a drip going that will help with that. I also can add some a few other things that will get your body back to normal. As for food, how long has it been since you've eaten a proper meal?"

"A week, maybe? He never fed me that well but when I wouldn't cooperate, he starved me."

"Could you drink some broth?" the Doctor said.

"Maybe, I'm not sure," Jessica said.

"I'll give you a bit of soup and see if you can hold it down. We have to introduce foods gradually so you won't be sick. For the moment though, I want you to rest and recover. Don't worry about a thing, you're safe here. He or his undead slaves can't break in here so just focus on getting better, yeah?"

"Thank you," Jessica said.

The Doctor smiled and patted her shoulder. He and the others wheeled the exam table out of the med bay and down the corridor. He mentally asked the TARDIS to prepare a room for her and the TARDIS quickly did and moved it so it was at the end of the corridor. Inside the room was a hospital bed, bedside table with some magazines, puzzle books and a pitcher of water with a plastic cup. Across the room was a wall mounted TV and there were flowers in vases under it. Everyone helped transfer her into the bed and arranged it so she was comfortable and the IV could continue to drip without risk of being pulled out. The Doctor found a combination remote control and call button and handed it to her as Rose put the upper bedrails up on either side to keep her from falling out. When they made sure she was comfortable and she understood that she could push the call button and call them at any time, they left her to recuperate while the Doctor led them to the makeup room so they could take their makeup off and change.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Three hours later, there was a knock on Jessica's door. Jessica was watching a chat show on TV while slowly sipping some water. She looked towards the door as it opened and the Doctor peeked inside. He was now makeup free, showered and had his old suit and trainers back on.

"Hi, this is me without the skull," he said to her. "Just coming to check up on you."

Jessica looked him over when he entered the room.

"You're a big improvement over the zombie," she said to him.

"Am I a pretty boy?" the Doctor said, coming to the side of the bed.

"Um…yeah, a bit but I fancy pretty boys," Jessica replied.

"So does Rose but I don't see it," the Doctor said with a shrug. "So…how are you feeling? You look and sound stronger."

"I feel better, thanks," Jessica said.

"Can you keep the water down?" the Doctor asked, concerned.

"So far."

"Like to try a bit of soup then?"

Jessica nodded. The Doctor went back outside and returned a moment later carrying a bowl filled with chicken broth and a soup spoon.

"It's not much but it's a start," he said, putting it on her bedside table.

He pushed a button on the side of the bed and the front of the bed raised up as Jessica moved into position. He then pushed the bedside table over so it was in front of her.

"I hate to ask but…where did this Lord Morte live?" the Doctor asked.

Jessica thought for a moment.

"It's away from the city, in the countryside," she said. "In a forest in a huge clearing. There's his estate and a gate around it and then the forest surrounds it and there's a path that goes through the woods to the road. It's…east of here."

"I can have the TARDIS scan for an estate in the middle of a forest east of here. Thank you," the Doctor said.

"But I'd stay away from it, if he catches you, you'll be tortured and beaten and he'll do something to turn you into zombies," Jessica said fearfully. "I don't know you and your friends that well but I wouldn't wish what he did to those people on anyone, let alone you."

The Doctor smiled.

"I've helped many people across the universe and I've met scarier things that some bloke and his gang of zombies. But I do appreciate the warning. The truth is, this Lord Morte has to be stopped and my friends and me, we're the only ones that can do it."

"You're sure about that?" Jessica said.

"Fairly sure, yeah," the Doctor said. "I may look like a pretty boy to you but this particular pretty boy is a force to be reckoned with."

"I wish you luck then," Jessica said. "I wish I could do more than give you information."

"You've done plenty for us," the Doctor said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Just relax and get your health back and that'll be thanks enough for me."

Jessica nodded and the Doctor patted her shoulder.

"Well…better let you eat before the soup gets cold and that's a scary thing too!"

Jessica laughed when he bulged his eyes at that before he grinned and gave her one more pat on the shoulder. Jessica watched him go before breathing a sigh of relief, comforted in the knowledge that she was safe now as she started to eat her soup.


End file.
